Wrench



W. W. WOODWARD.

WRENCH.

APPLICATION FILED 11111. 18, 1919.

Patented Apr. 13, 1929,

WILLIAM W. WOODW'AR-D, O1? MQUNT RAINIER, MARYLAND,

WRENCH.

Application filed January 18, 1919.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, lVILLIAM lV. W001)- WARD, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Mount Rainier, in the county of Prince Georges and State of Maryland, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in lVrenches, of which the following is a specification. 7

This invention relates to wrenches and has for its objectthe provision of a comparatively simple and thoroughly eflicient tool of this character capable of being quickly adjusted to lit nuts and other objects of different sizes and which when once adjusted to fit a nut of a given size may be carried from place to place for engagement with nuts of a corresponding size without liability of disturbing the initial adjustment of the movable jaw of the wrench and consequently without the necessity of readjustment of said movable jaw each time the wrench is employed for that purpose.

A further object of the invention is to provide a wrench, the shank of which is formed with inner and outer racks of teeth of different sizes which coact with a toothed locking dog carried by the movable jaw of the wrench and serve to lock said movable jaw against longitudinal movement in either direction after adjustment.v

The invention further aims to provide a novel form of locking dog which fits within a seating recess in the movable jaw and is provided with spaced teeth for engage ment with, the outer rack of teeth on the shank, one of the teeth of the locking dog being formed with an extension or auxiliary tooth which coacts with the inner rack of shank teeth, means being provided for normally and yieldably holding the locking teeth in engagement with the shank teeth.

A still further object of the invention is generally to improve this class of devices so as to increase their utility, durability and efficiency.

Other and incidental objects will appear as the description proceeds. In the drawings wherein I have illustrated the preferred embodiment of the invention Figure 1 is a perspective view of a wrench embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof, partly in section;

Fig. 3 is a detail perspective view of the locking member and cushioning spring detached; I

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 13, 1920.

Serial No. 271,832.

Fig. at is a transverse sectional view taken on the line 4'-l of Fig. 2 and looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig, 5 is an enlarged perspective detail of a portion of the shank viewed from its inner edge and in section at the top of the view to show the shape of the channel; and

Fig. 6 is a-vertical section through the shank edgewise thereof.

Corresponding and like parts are referred to in the following description and indicated in all the views of the drawings by the same reference characters.

The improved wrench forming the subject-matter of the present invention comprises a fixed or stationary jaw 5 having a depending shank 6 formed integral therewith, the lower end of the shank constitutinga handle 7, as shown. The inner edge of the shank 6 is provided with a channel whose walls are dished or curved and converge to the bottom of the channel, and here the channel is deepened or in fact grooved as perhaps best illustrated at the top of Fig. 5. The groove and the walls are provided with inner and outer racks of teeth respectively numbered 8 and 9, the former being arranged between the other two as shown. The teeth in the outer racks conform to the curvature of the walls, and each has a fiat shoulder 11 facing upward and an inclined back 10. The teeth in the innerrack are smaller although they preferably fill the groove and each has a flat shoulder 12 facing downward and an inclined back 18. By preference the face of each inner tooth 8 alines with the faces of two correspondin outer teeth 9 as seen in Fig. 6.

Slidably mounted on the shank 6 is a movable jaw l i having a seating recess 15 formed therein and opening through the opposite side faces thereof, there being asocket '16 also formed in the movable aw and communicating with the seating recess 15. Disposed within the seating recess 15 is a locking dog 17 forked at its inner end to produce spaced arms 18 adapted to embrace the shank 6 and provided at its outer end with a reduced extension 19 which fits movably within the socket 16, there being a coiled spring 20 interposed between the extension 19 and the bottom of the socket 16 for the purpose of normally and yieldably holding the locking member projected toward the shank of the wrench.

Formed on the locking member 17 between the arms 18 are spaced main teeth 21,.preferably three in number and which face downwardly and conform in shape and size to the outer teeth 9 and with which they coact in the adjustment of the movable jaw. The main teeth 21 by engagement with the outer teeth 9 on the shank of the wrench serve to prevent rearward longitudinal movement of the movable jaw 14; after the latter has been adjusted to [it a nut or other object of a given size. One of the teeth 21, preferably the uppermost, is formed with an auxiliary teeth 22 facing upward and adapted to err gage the inner teeth 8 on the shank for the purpose of preventing forward longitudinal movement of the movable jaw 14 on the shank after saidmovable jaw has been adj uste'd into engagement with a nut. The face of the auxiliary tooth 22 is preferably flat for contact with the faces of the teeth 8, while the forward edge 23 thereof is preferably downwardly inclined so as to clear the teeth 8 when the dog is retracted and the movable jaw moved toward the operating handle 7. It will thus be seen that the teeth 21 by engagement with the outer rack teeth 9 serve to lock the movablejaw against longitudinal movement in one direction, while the auxiliary tooth 22- by engagement with the inner rack teeth 8 serves to hold the mov able jaw against accidental longitudinal movement in the opposite direction. By having the wrench formed with two sets of teeth in this manner, after the movable jaw has been adjusted to fit a nut of a given size, the wrench may be carried from place to place for engagement with nuts of a corresponding size without liability of disturbing the initial adjustment of the movable jaw of the wrench and consequently without the necessity of readjustment of said movable jaw each time the wrench is employed for that purpose.

The opposite side faces of the arms 18 are preferably inclined and serrated or otherwise roughened so as to permit the same to be conveniently grasped between the fingers when retracting the locking dog to effect the adjustment of the movable jaw. The recess 15 is also preferably of sufficient length to permit the locking member to be removed laterally through either side of the movable' jaw when said movable aw is detached from the shank of the wrench and it is desired to effect any necessary repairs to the locking member.

In order to operate the wrench, it 'is merely necessary to grasp the serratedfaces of the arms 18 and exert a slight pressure thereon, then move the locking member against the tension of the springIQO so asvto disengagethe teethof the lockingdogfrom the rack teeth on'the shank. .After adjustment of the movable jaw has been effected the locking dog is released and the expansion of the spring-20 causesthe teeth on the dog to engage with the teeth on the shank of the wrench and securely hold the movable jaw against accidental displacement. The outer teeth 9 are not only duplicated in the two racks, but also they are preferably larger and extend over a' greater area of the channel than the inner teeth 8 in order to receive and sustain the thrust of the movable jaw incident to tightening a nut and the like. 'ihe inner teeth 8 may be-mad'e relatively small and thin inasmuch as practically-no strain is exerted thereon, said inner teeth serving mainly to prevent retrograde movement of the movable jaw after the latter has been once adjusted to fit a nut or other object of a given size. 1

It will be noted by reference to Fig. 4 of the drawings that the roughened or serrated faces of the arms 18 stand well within the planes of the side'faces of the movable jaw 14 so as not to offer any surface projections on the movable jaw during the operation of the wrench. It will also be noted that the inner and ou-terracks of teeth lie in the channel, entirely within the lines of the shank, so that said teeth are in effect housed and protected and do not come in contact with'the hand of the operator when using the wrench." The-handle 7 of the wrench being of the same cross sectional diameter as the-shank, the jaw 14 may be readily removed therefrom by sliding said jaw off of the free end of said handle. If desired, however, a screw or similar device may be inserted in the shank or handle to prevent ac cidcntal separation of the movable jaw from said shank. The wrench is extremely simple in construction and may be manufactured and placed on the market at a minimum cost.

Ha'ving thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

1. A wrench including a stationary jaw having a shank -w 1058 inner edge is provided with a I channel having curved side walls, said; walls having outer racks of teeth conforming with their curvature and facing toward said jaw and the bottom of the channel having an inner rack of teeth facing in the opposite direction, a movable jaw slidable on said shank, and a locking dog movably mounted within the movable jaw and having oppositely facing teeth conforming to and adapted for simultaneous engagement with the several, racks.

2. A wrench including a stationary jaw having a shank whose innerledge is provided with a channel having curved sidewalls, said walls having outer racks of teeth conforming withtheir curvatureand .facingtoward said jawiand the bottom of thechannel having an inner rack of teeth facing, in the opposite direction, a movable jawsli'dable 011 said shank, and a spring-pressed dog within the movable jaw having a plurality of vertically spaced teeth facing away from said stationary jaw and conforming to and adapted to engage with said outer racks and an auxiliary tooth facing in the other direction for engagement with said inner rack.

3. A wrench including a stationary aw, a shank carried by the stationary jaw and channeled in its edge, the channel being provided with inner and outer racks of teeth facing in opposite directions and disposed at an angle to each other, a movable jaw slidably mounted on the shank, a locking dog carried by the movable jaw and provided with vertically spaced teeth conforming to and adapted to engage with the outer racks of teeth, and an auxiliary tooth formed on one of said teeth and adapted to engage the inner rack.

4:. A wrench including a stationary jaw having a shank, the inner edge of which is provided with a channel and the bottom of the channel provided with a groove, the walls of the channel having outer racks of teeth facing in one direction and the groove having an inner rack of teeth facing in the other direction, a movable jaw slidably mounted on the shank, a locking dog carried by the movable jaw and provided with vertically spaced teeth engaging the outer racks, an auxiliary tooth carried by one of the spaced teeth and adapted to engage the inner rack, and means for normally and yieldably holding the teeth on the dog in engagement with the teeth of said racks.

5. A wrench including a stationary jaw having a shank channeled along its inner edge and the channel formed with inner and outer racks of teeth, a movable jaw slidably mounted on the shank and provided with a transverse recess opening through the side faces thereof and having a socket communicating with said recess, a locking dog having spaced arms seated in said recess and spanning the shank of the wrench and having a reduced extension entering the socket, spaced teeth formed on the dog between said arms, an auxiliary tooth formed on one of the spaced teeth, and a spring between the extension and the bottom of the socket for normally and yieldably holding the teeth on said dog in engagement with the teeth on the shank.

(3. A wrench including a stationary jaw having a shank, the inner edge of which is provided with a curved channel whose side walls have outer racks of teeth con forming to their curvature and whose bottom has an inner rack of teeth, a movable jaw slidably mounted on the shank, a locking dog carried by the movable jaw and including spaced arms spanning the shank, spaced teeth formed on the dog between said arms for engagement with the outer rack of teeth, one of said spaced teeth be ing provided with an auxiliary tooth for engagement with the inner rack of teeth, the top of said auxiliary tooth being flat, and means for normally and yieldably holding the teeth on the dog in engagement with the teeth 011 the shank.

7. A wrench including a stationary jaw, a shank carried by the stationary jaw and having its inner edge channeled and provided with racks of teeth of different sizes, a movable jaw slidably mounted 011 the shank and having a transverse recess formed therein, a locking dog slidably mounted in the recess and provided with spaced arms spanning the shank, the outer faces of the arms being disposed within the lines of the side faces of the movable jaw and roughened to form a finger grip, superposed teeth arranged between the arms of the dog for engagement with certain of the rack teeth and an auxiliary tooth formed on one of the superposed teeth for engagement with the other rack teeth, and means for normally and yieldably holding all of the teeth of the dog in engagement with the teeth on the shank.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

WILLIAM W. WOODWARD. [L. 3.] 

